Typewriter attachment for telegraph systems



Aug. 14-, 1923. 11,,464952 D. MONICOL TYPEWRITER ATTACHMENT FORTELEGRAPH SYSTEMS Filed Aug. 25. 1919 s I P \Nt I. Q Q & H

WITNESSES 'N T 5% I I ,b mfi lmwf 1115 ATTORNEY Patented Aug. 14, 1923.

DONALD MCNICOL, or new Yonrr, n. v

COMPANY, or listen, new YORK,

. trainer orricir.

ASSIGNOR TO REMINGTON TYPEVIRITER A GORPQRATION O33 NEVJ YORK.

TYPEWRI'IER ATTACHMENT FOB TELEGRAPH SYSTEMS.

Application filed August 23, 1919. Serial No. 319,512.

.To all whom it may concern.

.- Be it known that I, DONALD MoNIooL, citizen ofthe United States, andresident of theborough of Manhattan, city of New York, in the county ofNew York and State of New York, have invented a certain new and usefulTypewriter Attachment for Telegraph Systems, of which the following is aspecification. 1 V

In commercial telegraphy it is quite cus tomary nowadays. for thereceiving operator to employ a typewriting machine to transscribethemessages as theycome in, the messages being 7 usually sent by anordinary Morse key or by some modification thereof,

as for example a semi-automatic sender key.

In orde' thatthe typewriters may be conveniently used it is customaryalso to have especially constructed tables. A tabl top at the properheight for the sending key is too high for the placement on said top ofthe typewriter to be used in receiving the messages, and hence it hasbecome necessary to cut away a portion of the table top and 5 provide asunken platform for the placement thereupon of the typewriter. Thisplatform orrbaseboard is so situated that the keys of the typewritercome somewhat below the level of the table top, whereby the said keysmay be more conveniently V manipulated.

Moreover, this platform or baseboard is generally in the form; of aslide whereby the writing machine may be pulled forward towards theoperator and he usually sits with the machine in this forward positionwhile receiving messages. The regular sending key is generally mountedupon the table top some little distance to the rear of this forwardposition of the operator and in consequence when the incoming message 1s1nd1stinct ornot understood it becomes necessary for the receivingoperator to change his position, bend over and reach .back to thesending key mounted upon the table top in order to notify thetransmitting operator at the other end of the line that itis desired tohave him repeat the message from some particular point. Of course afterhaving done this the receiving operator must then re-adjust himself'backto receiving position at the typewriter. Th'is is not onlytime-consuming but is also inconvenient and annoying. My invention hasfor its main object to provide means whereby it is unnecessary for therec'eiving operator to change his position or even to remove his handsfrom the keyboard of the typewriter when he desires to interrupt theincoming message or notify the sender to correct or repeat somethingthat he has passed beyond. To this end I have provided an attachment forthe keyboard of the typ writer, which attachment is provided with asupplemental or auxiliary sending key that is connected from the typewriter by suitable wires to the regular send ing key located on thetable top, and this attachment is also provided with a switch so thatthe instant anything goes wrong with the incoming message, or theoperator fails to understand the signals he may close or open thecircuit to the sender, according as a single wire or a multiplexed wireis in use, and signal or telegraph the transmitting operator without thereceiving operator changing his position or removing his hands from thekeyboard of thetypewriter.

To the above and other ends which will hereinafter appear, my inventionconsists in the features of construction, combinations of devices, andarrangements of parts hereinafter described and particularly pointed outin the claims.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 represents part of a Remington typewriter, more especially thekeyboarc portion thereof, with my attachment applied thereto and alsoconnected up to an ordinary Morse sender at a distance.

Figure 2 represents a vertical section, on an enlarged scale, taken atthe line av 00 through the Morse sender, showing more particularly themanner of connecting the typewriter electrically with said sender.

Figure 3 isa vertical section through the attachment on the line y ofFigure 1 and looking in the direction of the arrow thcreat and with theswitch open.

Figure 41- is a similar view showing the switch closed and the auxiliarysending key depressed or in operation.

Figure 5 is a section on the line .2 of Figure 1, looking in thedirection of the arrow thereat and showing the switch closed.

Figure 6 is a similar view showing the switch open.

In the various views the same parts will be found designated by the samenumerals of reference.

1 represents the forward part of the framework, of the typewriter withinwhich is banked the usual rows of alphabet and numeral keys 2, the caseshift keys 3 and the carriage spacing key i. A row of five keys- 5represents the usual series of tabulator keys present in the Remingtonmachine. My attachment designated as a whole by the numeral 6, ispreferably secured to the right-hand side bar of the typewriter frameand in a manner such that the auxiliary sending key comes Within theframework and close to the regular keys of the typewriter. Thisauxiliary key comprises a. hard rubber button or head 7 and a stem 8carrying at near its lower end a metallic contact piece or head 9. Thestem passes through a block of suitable insulating material 10 and saidstem is provided with a coiled spring 11 which tends to keep the keynormally up, shown in Fig. 3. The contact piece 9 is preferably providedwith a pin 12 which slides in a narrow slot 13 in the insulating; blockfor the purpose of preventing rotation of the key or its stem. i Theextreme lower end of the stem attached by a screw 14 to one end of awire 15 that connects with the regular lliiorse sender on the table top.The wire 15 passes from said screw up to a metallic connector 16. theeyeportion of which is attached by a screw 17 a metallic plate orcontact 18 embedded in the non-conducting block 10. the screw 17 alsoserving to hold the plate 18 in position.

Said plate 18 forms one element of a switch member. the other element ofwhich consists of a metallic lever 19 pivoted by a screw 20 to the block10 and provided with a hard rubber key or finger piece 21 which isriveted to the metallic part of the lever as inclicated at 22. A stoppin 23 is provided to limit the outward movement of the switch lever thebottom end of which rides on the edge of a metallic plate 24- secured byscrews to the underside of the insulating block. This plate 2% isprovided with a hole at 28 for the passage therethrough oi the lower endof the stem 8, said hole being large than the diameter of the stem sothat the latter does not touch the plate.

Attached also to the metallic connector 16 is another wire 15, which maybe considerec as a continuation of the wire 15. The head of thepivot-screw clamps upon the switchlevcr 19 a metallic connector 27, towhich is secured a wire 28 that extends to the regular Morse sender ontop of the table.

The covered wires 15 and 28 are brought together and twisted and to thebared end of each wire is soldered or otherwise attached a blade orcontact plate-29 of thin spring brass or copper. Between these blades 29is arranged an insulating strip 30. As shown at Fig. 2 the connector orwedge thus formed is adapted to be inserted be tween the contact points31 of the main key instrument, one of said contact points 7 said block.

31 beingon the under side of the key lever 32 and the other on the baseplate 33. in practice, though, I sometimes make'the connection to theprimary sender by inserting the connector ends under the spring clip 3%with which the switch lever 35 co-operates. The main transmittinginstrument as a whole is properly connected to the line and ground wires(indicated by 36 and 37) having as customary the usual batteryconnections not shown. Neither has-it been deemed necessary toillustrate the sounder usually employed in the system. V

When the connector is inserted or plugged into the primary sendinginstrument as shown the 'current'is conducted to the auxiliary keyattachment and the circuit may be made and broken by operating the saldkey,

the switclrlever 19 at the attachment and the switch lever 35 at theprimaryinstruinent being set as required.

It will be seen that the electrical connections between the main key andthe auxiliary key and the line are such that the operator at thetypewriter may send a message to the operator at the other end-oi theline and may also receive a message from the latter. ll hen the switchlever 19 is in the closed position shown atFig. 5, the operator at thetypewriter may receive messages, the current then flowing; from wire 28.through lever 19 to contact 18 and through eon nector 1G to wire 15wires 15 and 28 beinc; connected to the wires 36 and 37 and to any ofthe customary sounders in circuit not shown. These sounders may be suchas are used in either the single or multiplex operation. When theswitch-lever 19 is open as in Fig. 6. then the operator at thetypewriter inay signal the other operator by actuating the key 78. Atthis time the current traverses wire 28, switch lever '19, base plate24-, wire 15, and wire 15*, whenever the piece 9 contacts with plate 24and closes the circuit.

Any suitable means may be provided for securing:- the auxiliary keyinstrument to the typewriter. I, however. prefer the simple construct]on shown which comprlses a clampinc plate 38 that bears on the outervertical side of the keyboard frame 1, and is firmly .pressedithereaeainst by two horizontal screws 39 which enter tapped holes in theblock 10. The said'clamping plate at its.

upper portion is formed with a horizontal flange 410 that bears upon thetop edge of the frame'bar 1, and said flange is extended over onto thetop-0t the insulatingblock 10,;and

secured thereto by two vertical; screws a l whosethreaded ends entertapped holes in Said screws pass through plain holes in: S2116." flangeand the latter is cut away between said holes so that. it may be clearof the key stern-and. its spring. Owing; to the flanged formation 1 ofthe i'rame- V by Letters Patent, is

' r 1 l. as auxiliarytele raph key attachment'j bar the block 10 iscutaway or recessed to match so that the outer side of the block liesflush with the inner face of'th'e frame side bar.

' If it be desired at any time-touse the main key the connector must bewithdrawn from between the contacts 29, 29, or fromunder the s urin clis 34: as the case ma be.

' henever it may be desired to shift the typewriter to another table orplace the V connector is also withdrawn from the main keyrather thandisengage the attachment from the typewriter. In many instances thetypewriters belon tothe operators and accordingly they talre'or movethemachines with them wherever they may have to go.

My attachments are mad m fit-or' be ap plied-to existing machines and tobe soldto operators thereof, though of course they may be applied'tonewly mademachines and sold therewith. r I )7 What I claim as new anddesire to secure comprising an insulating block} a clamping means forsecuring said bloclrto the sidebar of a typewriter frame, a handoperated transmitting key slidable in said block and provided with acontact dev1ce near 1ts lower end, a contact plate on the under sideot'said block and perforated fort-he passage therethrough of the lowerend of said key, a wire connected to the lower protruding end of saidkey and extending to a switch contact secured to said block, a switchlever gag pivoted to said block and adapted for movement to and fromsaid last mentioned contact, said switch lever at its lower end beingsaid block andthroug h a hole in a metallic icontact plate at the underside of said block, a contact ClGVlCfi on said stem adapted when the keyis depressed to contact with the 7 plate on the under side of the block,a switch lever pivoted at the side of 5211C]. block, a contact for'said,lever embedded in the side of said block, an electric connection between.tbclower protruding endof said stem and said embedded contact device,an electric connection between the latter and the line wires, andan'electric connection between the switch and the line wires. 1 v

Signed at the borough of Manhattan, city of New York. in the county ofNew York and Stateof New York, this 21st day of August, A. D. 1919.

DONALD MGNICOL.

Witnesses CHARLES E.,SMITH, E. M. lVnLLs.

